Chennai, 10 December 2025: A scintillating fight back, after being down 0-2 till the last quarter, saw the Indian Juniors make a stunning recovery in the last 12 minutes, for a 4-2 victory over Argentina at the SDAT Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium, Egmore, here on Wednesday.
Scoring all the four goals from set pieces in the last quarter, including a penalty stroke and three short corners, Indian juniors were clearly off the mark in tactical moves made mess of at least three zooming through balls, albeit the last penalty corner coming with the Argentine goalkeeper missing under the cross-piece. The 4-2 victory, brought India a bronze medal, their first in the Junior World Cup, which they have won way back in 2001 at Hobart under coach CR Kumar and repeated a triumphant campaign at our home ground in 2016 with Harendra Singh as coach. After a 12-year gap, the 1997 squad under late Rajiv Mishra lost to Australia at Milton Keynes, England, for our first Under-21 World Cup medal, a silver. The current Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey, was part of that team.
India’s bronze-medal showdown against Argentina at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium began with a jolt so early that many spectators had not even settled into their seats. Barely three minutes had elapsed when Argentina earned a penalty stroke on the left post from the spectators’ viewpoint, awarded after a defensive tangle inside the circle where India were caught flat-footed. Nicolas Rodriguez stepped up and dispatched it with cold precision, sending India into an immediate 0–1 deficit. The early blow rattled India but also triggered a spell of determined possession, with Dilraj Singh testing the Argentine defence and the midfield knitting together some fluid sequences, yet the finishing touch remained elusive. By halftime, India had done more huffing and puffing than actual damage, while Argentina carried the satisfaction of a clinical lead.
The third quarter introduced its own turbulence. India returned with intensity, earning a flurry of penalty corners in rapid succession, but the execution betrayed nerves: one flick soared over the bar, another was blocked at the first battery, and variations lacked sharpness. This was exactly the phase where observers later remarked—Manuja of the Times of India included—that India’s execution in set pieces often did not mirror the clarity of instructions from the dugout, leaving one uncertain whether the messages failed to reach the players or whether the players drifted into their own improvisations under pressure. Argentina, meanwhile, kept their poise. In the 44th minute, Santiago Fernandez struck with a crisp field goal that carved open India’s defence and sank them 0–2, a deficit that looked, for a moment, fatal. Princedeep Singh’s reflex double save moments later prevented a third Argentine goal, and that intervention would soon prove pivotal.
Then came the quarter that will be remembered for years. The clock touched the 49th minute when India finally broke the Argentine dam. Off a penalty corner, Anmol Ekka sent in a beautifully disguised ball that Ankit Pal deflected in with the faintest yet most exquisite touch, halving the deficit and electrifying the stadium. Argentina looked momentarily stunned. India sensed it. Just two minutes later—52 minutes on the clock—another penalty corner, another Ekka variation, and this time it was Manmeet Singh who lunged forward to guide the ball home. From 0–2 to 2–2 in the blink of an eye, India had rewritten the emotional temperature of the match. The Argentine bench grew restless; the Indian bench was suddenly alive.
With momentum now roaring in their favour, India pressed high, harrying Argentine defenders whose clearances became increasingly hurried. In the 57th minute, Arshdeep Singh bulldozed into the circle with trademark aggression, drawing a foul that left the umpire no choice but to award a penalty stroke. Shardanand Tiwari, unwavering under pressure, sent the ball screaming into the net. India 3, Argentina 2, with only minutes left. The stadium shook.
Argentina, desperate to salvage the match, made a bold tactical gamble with about two and a half minutes left—2:41 on the stadium clock when the decision became visible to all. Their coach pulled off the goalkeeper, replacing him with an additional outfield player in a last, frantic push to force an equaliser. It was a high-risk strategy, one India had seen fail in another match where they had allowed a late equaliser to Belgium when faced with the same tactic. But this time, India refused to yield an inch. Argentina stormed forward, but India’s defensive composure did not break. When India earned a penalty corner in the 58th minute, the empty Argentine goal loomed unprotected. Ekka’s dragflick did not need to beat a keeper—only the rushing defensive line—and it lashed into the backboard with finality. A fourth Indian goal, sealing the most remarkable of turnarounds.
From trailing 0–2 at the end of the third quarter to winning 4–2 by full time, India sculpted a bronze-medal victory carved out of grit, tactical clarity, set-piece brilliance in the final quarter, and an unshakeable refusal to accept defeat. The crowd roared, the players embraced, and the night in Chennai belonged to India—bruised, breathless, but triumphant.
